Caster wheel assemblies are used for many applications including industrial conveyors, carts, portable dollies, and various other products which must be supported for rolling movement. The caster wheel assembly typically comprises a mounting flange secured to the frame of the item on which it is to be used and a wheel-carrying yoke which is supported for rotational movement about an axis perpendicular to the mounting flange. Typically, the yoke and mounting flange are permanently secured together with one or more interposed series of ball bearings for facilitating rotational movement of the yoke and wheel with respect to the mounting flange.
Since the bearing races defined or carried by the mounting flange and yoke typically are inexpensively formed of sheet metal or the like, they are subject to wear after prolonged use, which will render the caster wheel assembly inoperative and necessitate its complete removal and replacement. This can be cumbersome and time consuming necessitating unscrewing a plurality of mounting bolts, removing the caster assembly, and reassembling a replacement caster assembly again requiring handling and securement of a plurality of fasteners. Moreover, since the caster assemblies are designed for periodic replacement, the mounting and bearings utilized in such assemblies are short lived, with the yoke, mounting flange and bearings being of relatively lightweight metal, which in turn is more susceptible to failure or damage during usage.